Global Firm Clyde & Co Forms Legal Data Lab with UCL

Global insurance law firm Clyde & Co has launched a legal Data Analytics Lab in partnership with University College London (UCL) to help the firm accelerate exploration of legal tech and insurtech product development.

The Lab, an initiative led by partner Mark Wing and the firm’s Innovation Board, will be staffed by Clyde & Co legal, data science and strategy staff, and students from UCL’s renowned computer science department.

The firm said in a statement that ‘the team will use data analysis supplemented with machine learning tools to explore workflow efficiencies as well as products and services for clients. Initial projects have focused on predicting fraudulent activity in relation to claims, the likelihood of disputes going to trial or to settlement, and potential litigation outcomes’.

Wing said: ‘A large part of the value that law firms provide to their clients is the knowledge and expertise of their lawyers. As a global firm we have heaps of knowledge but the question we always challenge ourselves with is how we harness it as quickly and efficiently as we can for our clients.’

‘Because much of our knowledge is stored as data, having a data analytics lab provides us with another mechanism for unlocking insight, value and solutions for our clients. We think there is great potential in this project and we are delighted to be able to work with the leaders in their field at UCL. As the lab develops it is our aim to also involve clients in the work,’ he added.

Clyde & Co established a global Innovation Board in 2016. In September, the firm also launched Clyde Code, an innovative new consultancy to advise insurers and clients in other sectors on all aspects of the burgeoning new area of smart contracts, blockchain and distributed ledger technologies.